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Glossary of summaries

Free movement of persons, asylum and immigration

Title V of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (Articles 67-89, TFEU) is devoted to the EU's area of freedom, security and justice (AFSJ). This is an area without internal frontiers, in which the free movement of persons is ensured in conjunction with appropriate measures with respect to external border controls, asylum, immigration and the prevention and combating of crime. It therefore comprises:

policies on border checks, asylum and immigration;

judicial cooperation in civil matters;

judicial cooperation in criminal matters; and

police cooperation.

Most EU legislative proposals in this field are now adopted under the ordinary legislative procedure.

Article 12 of the Treaty on European Union allows the national parliaments of EU countries 8 weeks to examine a given legislative proposal in the light of the subsidiarity principle. Until those 8 weeks have elapsed, no decision can be taken at EU level on that proposal. As regards the AFSJ, if a quarter of the national parliaments so request, a proposal must be reviewed (Article 7(2) of Protocol No 2).